01
Historical record
A new castle on Chausuyama
In 1588 Kato Kiyomasa was given the northern half of Higo Province (today's Kumamoto Prefecture) and moved into the old castle there. He then began building a new castle on a plateau called Chausuyama, completed it in 1607, and changed the way the place name was written, from 隈本 to 熊本, the Kumamoto we know today.[5]
02
Historical record
Kato Kiyomasa, master of stone walls
Kiyomasa was renowned for his stone walls. Kumamoto's walls start with a gentle slope at the bottom and curve until they are almost vertical at the top, so neither samurai nor ninja could climb them; they are called musha-gaeshi, "warrior repellers." Kiyomasa also rebuilt his war-torn domain with river works and new rice fields, and people in Kumamoto still call him affectionately "Seishoko-san."[5]
03
Historical record
Seat of the Hosokawa until the end of the shogunate
The Kato family lost the domain after two generations, and in 1632 Hosokawa Tadatoshi arrived in Higo. From then until the Meiji Restoration, Kumamoto Castle belonged to the Hosokawa. Tradition says Tadatoshi stepped down from his palanquin in front of the West Main Gate and bowed deeply before entering. In 1640 he invited the famous swordsman Miyamoto Musashi to Kumamoto, and in 1755 the domain school Jishukan opened in the second enclosure.[5][4][8]
04
Historical record
The keep burns on the eve of the Satsuma Rebellion
During the Satsuma Rebellion of 1877, Kumamoto Castle endured a siege of more than 50 days. Government troops under Tani Tateki held out against Saigo Takamori's Satsuma army, and the castle never fell. Just before the fighting began, however, a fire destroyed the keep and the palace in the main enclosure. Theories include arson and a deliberate burning by the defenders, but the cause has never been determined.[5][1]
05
Historical record
Surviving turrets, a rebuilt keep, and the earthquake
Thirteen structures that escaped the fire, including Uto Yagura and the turrets of Higashi-Takenomaru, are Important Cultural Properties, and the site became a Special Historic Site in 1955. In 1960 the keeps were rebuilt to their outward appearance in steel-reinforced concrete, partly with citizens' donations, and in 2008 the great hall of the main palace was reconstructed. Then the 2016 Kumamoto earthquakes struck: of the 13 historic structures, 2 collapsed and 3 partly collapsed, and 5 of the 20 reconstructed buildings fell. About 30 percent of the stone walls, 517 sections covering some 23,600 m², collapsed, bulged or loosened, and 229 sections came down entirely.[5][8][4]
06
Historical record
A second earthquake on the road to full recovery
The keep was repaired first, with added earthquake reinforcement and barrier-free access, and was fully restored in March 2021; the long wall (Nagabei), an Important Cultural Property, was repaired in January 2021. In March 2023 Kumamoto City revised its Kumamoto Castle Recovery Basic Plan, extending the overall recovery period by 15 years to fiscal 2052. The plan aims to finish Uto Yagura and the main palace by fiscal 2032 and all Important Cultural Property buildings and main areas by fiscal 2042, after which the observation walkway will be removed and the remaining work carried out. Then, on July 28, 2026, another earthquake struck. Kumamoto City found collapses or damage at 40 locations in the stone walls, starting with those of the Nishidemaru enclosure, at 11 locations in buildings including the keep, and at 8 other spots. None of the roughly 400 people in the castle at the time were hurt. The paid area closed, but after inspections showed no major problems with the buildings and facilities in the areas open to visitors, it reopened on August 13. According to the mayor, thanks to its earthquake reinforcement the keep's interior was fine apart from some slightly misaligned steps. How this earthquake will affect the fiscal 2052 recovery plan is still being studied.[8][5][4][14][15]
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